By Ryan Mink
rmink@digitalsports.com
Washington Redskins tight end Chris Cooley could have picked from a myriad of charities or organizations to get involved with.
But when he thought long and hard about how he would like to give back to the community, Cooley chose education.
Cooley’s thirst for education and his adamant belief that it has played a large part in making him an NFL star brought him to Montgomery Blair High School Wednesday morning, where Cooley spoke to an auditorium packed with excited Blazers seniors.
“This is my opportunity to help others,” Cooley said. “It’s something I feel extremely strong about.”
Cooley launched his Chris Cooley Education Fund, which will allow Cooley to visit eight area high schools in three days. At each school, Cooley will make a $5,000 donation to the school’s academic programs.
He also announced the establishment of college scholarships through the Chris Cooley Scholarship Fund. He will provide eight “high-potential, low-income high school seniors” – one from each school – with a $25,000 college scholarship.
Cooley visited Fairmont Heights earlier in the morning and will head to Eastern, Spingarn, Forestville, Gar-Field, Clark County and Warren County high schools in the next couple of days. He plans on getting funding for the scholarships through auctioning his artwork and that of local artists and students at the Ritz Carlton some time in May.
“I think the most important thing for me to convey is that even though I play in the NFL, education has been a huge factor in getting to where I am in my life,” Cooley said. “It’s something I highly value.”
Cooley went to Logan High School in Utah, where he went on to excel in football, wrestling and baseball. But Cooley didn’t excel right away. He didn’t reach the varsity until his senior year, after he grew four inches and gained 40 pounds.
He received a scholarship to play football in his hometown at Utah State, but early on accepted that would be the end of his football career. That was just fine by him, however, because he was more focused on following his mother’s footsteps and becoming a high school art teacher.
“Without that education, without that process, I wouldn’t have had the opportunity to become a football player, to make money, to know what to do with my money,” Cooley said. “What a good education is to me is an education that provides a person the ability to think for themselves.”
Cooley played on special teams for his first two years and most of his junior year before he was given a chance when the first-stringer fumbled. Cooley made a name for himself the rest of that year, then led the nation in receptions as a senior.
That’s when his football career took off. Soon, he was being interviewed by NFL coaches and he attributes his skills in handling those situations to his education. Once being drafted by the Redskins in the 2004 draft, Cooley’s education certainly wasn’t shed.
Learning and studying plays, going to five-hour meetings and dealing with the media are all part of Cooley’s day-to-day chores.
“To be good, I’ve got to study,” Cooley said. “Being prompt, being on time, being smart, being a student, it all factors into what I do in my career. So that whole education process is so important. I don’t just put on pads in football.”
The learning hasn’t stopped. Cooley told a story about a recent run-in with a light socket. Determined to fix it himself, Cooley didn’t shut off the house’s electric before grabbing hold of the wires.
“I had a numb hand for a couple hours,” Cooley said. “I learned.”
The Blair students were captivated throughout the Power Point presentation, which Cooley’s mother helped him create and his brother administered in the auditorium. The students got chances to ask him questions and pose with him afterwards.
“It was very motivational,” said Blair’s Keith Ayensu, who plays football and runs track. “He can relate to us athletes.”
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